Blue is where swim shorts start for most men and that is not a bad instinct. The problem is that most blue swim shorts look fine on a website and forgettable on an actual beach. The colour does the work but the cut and fabric let it down. Too long in the leg, too plasticky in the lining, too much going on with the print. What we were looking for here were shorts that wear like they cost more than they do, in blues that actually flatter rather than just exist. Navy that reads as considered. Mid blues that work with a tan. The occasional stripe or texture that adds something without shouting about it. We also paid attention to length because an inch or two in the wrong direction changes everything. These are the swim shorts that look good from the pool to lunch without any effort on your part. That is precisely the point.